Apparatus for molding concrete walls



June 3, 1952 Filed Dec. 29, 1949 FIG.

E. H. PRAEGER APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS 14 Sheets-Sheet lINVENTOR. H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,593,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed Dec. 29, 1949 14 Sheets-Sheet2 INVENTOR. EMIL H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,598,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed Dec. 29, 1949 14 Sheets-Sheet3 FIG. 3 5k V V w INVENTOR. EMIL H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS l4Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 29, 1949 INVENTOR. EMIL H. PRAEGER m .124

ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,598,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed Dec. 29, 1949 14 Sheets-Sheet5 FIG.5

INVENTOR. EMIL H. PRAEGER FIG.6 BY WW6 ATTOF *IEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,598,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed D80. 29, 1949 l4 Sheets-Sheet6 INVENTOR. EMIL H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY.

F|G.8 A BY June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETEWALLS 14 Sheets-Sheet 7 Filed Dec. 29, 1949 INVEN TOR EMIL H. PRAEGER Q.

ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. HQPRAEGER APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS i4Sheets-Sheet 8 Filed Dec. 29, 1949 ANQN ' INVENTOR.

EMIL H. PRAE'GER yw ru ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,598,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed Dec. 29, 1949 14 Sheets-Sheet9 .u l W! H" INVENTOR.

EMIL H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY.

' June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,598,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed Dec. 29, 1949 14 Sheets-Sheetl0 H3 INVEN TOR.

ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS 14Sheets-Sheet 11 Filed Dec. 29, 1949 INVENTOR.

EMIL H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS l4Sheets-Sheet 12 Filed Dec. 29, 1949 Ill/Ill ll/ 1 INVENTOR EMIL H.PRAEGER 9L4, 124

ATTORNEY.

June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,593,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed Dec. 29, 1949 14 Sheets-Sheet13 2|2 226 FIG. 23

FIG. 24

INVENTOR. EMIL H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY June 3, 1952 E. H. PRAEGER 2,598,830

APPARATUS FOR MOLDING CONCRETE WALLS Filed Dec. 29, 1949 14 Sheets-Sheetl4 I F 5E4 :QE

@JZZZ FIG. 27

INVENTOR. EMIL H. PRAEGER ATTORNEY Patented June 3, 1 952 'U'NlT-EDsures PATENT OFFICE Emil H. Praeger, Brooklyn, N. Y., assignor to IbecHousing Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New YorkApplication December 29, 1949, Serial'No. 135,566

. 10 Claims.

This invention relates to a machine for castln'gfthe Walls of buildings,and particularly for casting, "from concrete or the like, sets of wallsfora large number of similar small buildings on nearby sites.

An object of the present invention is to construct wallsfor buildingsefficiently and economically. With the present invention it is possibleto form, 'ina single/casting. operation, a complete set of exteriorwalls fora building. Also, if desired, interior partitions for thebuilding may be formed in a single casting operation with the exteriorwalls. The present invention makes it possible to form, .at a rapidrate, similar sets of walls, all conforming with the same floor Themachine may be provided with an elevated frame or platform, opposed wallforms The frame may be considered to comprise a jig or pattern whichperforms a number of functions: first, it automatically properly orientsthe wall forms so that they generally conform with a predetermined fioorplan, thereby eliminating the necessity for laying out each buildinganew; second, itdetermines paths of movement for the forms, toward oneanother to a casting position and away from one another to, a strippedor open position, serving to guidethe forms along these predeterminedpaths; third, it determines the location of the casting and openpositions of the forms; and fourth, it serves as a unitary support forthe forms, and other parts of the machine, whereby the moving parts maybe manip ulated with respect to this support and'whereby the entiremachine may be lifted, transported, and lowered as a unit with the aidof this support.

For suspending the forms from the frame,

there are provided means, such as cam-andfollower means, adapted toallow the forms to be moved toward one another to the casting posi tionand away from one another to the stripped position, while alwaysremaining connected to the frame. The stripped or open position may alsoaptly be termed a, releasedposition- In stripping the formsfrom thewalls, the upper edgesof the forms are stripped before the lowerportionsiare' stripped. Thismotion may be provided by thecam-and-follower means which suspend the forms, as will be more fullyexplained at a subsequent point. The wallforms include outer wall forms,which form the outer surfaces of'the walls, and inner, wall forms whichform the inner surfaces of the walls. Special corner forms are providedfor forming the interior corners of the walls. These corner forms arestripped from the cast concrete prior to stripping the inner, wall formsin order to-allow the inner wall forms to be moved to the strippedposition without interfering with one another.

The above-mentioned, as well as other objects, together with the manyadvantages obtainable by the practice of the present invention, will bereadily comprehended by persons skilled in the art by reference to thefollowing detailed description taken in connection with the-annexeddrawings which respectively describe and illustrate apreferredembodiment of the invention, and wherein Y i Fig.1 is an end elevationalView of wall forming, apparatus which has been lowered onto a foundationslab. The inner and outer members of the apparatus are in closedposition, for retaining concrete therein.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1, as seen fromabove, in the same closed position, showing concrete therein. Theviewpoint of Fig. l with respect to Fig. 2 is indicated at in Fig. 2. Itmay be observed that Fig. 2 is on a somewhat smallerscale than Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the apparatus of Figs. 1 and,2, in closed position, the position of the sectional planebeingindicated at 3'3 in Fig. l. The window forms, which appear as a part of;Fig. 3, are shown as seen from immediately above them. rather than intrue section. a l i Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectionalview of theapparatus of Figs. 1 3, diifering from Fig. 3 in that now the formsareshown in open or stripped position, their inner and outer membershaving been moved away from one another, thereby being retracted fromthe concrete walls. The position of the sectional plane for Fig. 4 isthe same as that for Fig. 3.

Figs. 5-9 are schematic vertical sectional views of the apparatuashowingprogressive stages in "a pouring operation. The position of the secing,in different positions, mechanism for 'mov-j ing the opposed wall formstoward and away from one another, similar to a'portion of that 'shown inFigs. 5-9, drawn to a somewhat larger scale.

Fig. 13 is an enlarged view of a portion of Fig. 10, showing details ofthe mechanism for moving the wall forms. 1

Fig. 14 is a vertical sectional view of the mechanism shown in Fig. 13,the position'of the sectional plane being indicated at I4-i-l4 in Fig.13. r

Fig. 15 is a vertical sectional view extending perpendicularly through awall and the apparatus for forming same, at the position of a windowframe, the position of the sectional plane being shown at I5--l5 in Fig.3.

Fig. 16 is an'enlarged vertical sectional view through the same wall,apparatus, and window frame at a different sectional plane, certainportions of the frame being broken away, the position of the sectionalplane being shown at lS-IB in Fig. 3.

Fig. 1''! is a horizontal sectional view through the same window frameand a portion of the wall, the position of the sectional plane being Lindicated at l1--l1 in Fi 15.

.Fig. 18 is a vertical sectional view, featuring the mechanism forlocking the window frame in place, the position of the sectional planebeing indicated at |8l8 in Fig. 16. In Fig. 18 the locking mechanism isshown in locked position.

Fig. 19 is a view similar to Fig. 18, but with the locking mechanismshown in unlocked position.

Fig. 20 is a vertical sectional view through a portion of a wall and aninflatable corner form of the same type as that shown in Fig. 3. Theposition of the sectional plane isindicated at 20-20 in Fig. 21.

Fig. 21 is a horizontal sectional view through an interior corner of awall, featuring an inflatable corner form of the type shown in Fig. 20,inflated, with the apparatus in position against the wall. The positionof the sectional plane is indicated at 2I--2I in Fig. 20. Fig. 21 isdrawn to a larger scale than Fig. 20.

Fig. 22 is a horizontal sectional view of the elements shown in- Fig.21, but with the inflatable bladders of the corner form deflated, andthe inner wall forms in stripped position, that is, moved back from thewall.

Figs. 23 and 24 show a variation of the apparatus utilizing, instead ofthe inflatable corner form, a different type of corner form, as seen inplan view from above, certain upper portions of the apparatus beingomitted. In Fig. '23 the corner form and the inner wall forms-are incasting position, for retaining walls (not shown). In Fig. 24 the cornerform has been swung back from the corner of the wall, and the inner wallmovable frame 30 from which there is suspended, by mechanism to bedescribed, a series of wall forms, an outer one of which, 32, may beseen in Fig. 1 along with its horizontal walers andvertical framing. Asmay be seen in Fig. 4, a single wall form extends horizontally acrossan-entire flat surface of the walls; that is, for example, the form 32extends horizontally across the entire end of the proposed building.Likewise, as may be seen in Fig. 5, the individual forms extend theentire height of the walls.

Returning now to Fig. 1, the movable frame 30 is suspended, as from acrane, not shown, by cables 36, attached to suitable apertured membersaflixed to the frame 30.

The frame 30, in addition to providin'g'a common support from which theforms or panels such as 32 are movably' suspended, serves, as previouslyexplained, as a jig for guiding the forms and also serves as a workingplatform on which workmen may stand in pouring concrete into the formsor in manipulating the forms. Apparatus to aid in the pouring operationmay also be supported by the frame 30.

The entire assembly of forms is connected, directly or indirectly, tothe frame 30; and a moving crane may, by the cables 36, lift the frame30 and transport it, along with the forms suspended therefrom, tosuccessivesites. When the frame 30 is first lowered onto a site, it andthe remainder of the assembly are supported solely by the cables 36. Theframe however, is provided with downwardly-extending standards, such as38, as best shown in Fig. 5, and as also indicated in Fig. 4. Thesestandards terminate at their lower end in screw jacks All. When theapparatus is first lowered onto a'foundation slab 42, it may be assumedthat there is placed underneath each screw jack 4!] aweight-distributing plate 44. The screw jacks are initially set, bymeans of handles such as 46, to an extended position, so that they,together with the standards, support the frame 3i! at a great enoughelevation so that the forms swing clear of the foundation or ground.

In Fig. 5, there are shown, in cross section, a series of wall forms.The pair of forms on the left, 48 and 50, and the pair on the right, 52and 54, serve the purpose of forming exterior walls for the proposedbuilding, and the pair of forms toward the center, 56 and 58, serve thepurpose of forming an interior partition for the building.

A typical wall form, such as 48, has a flat inner face 60 of suitablegenerally smooth material. This material may, for example, in some casesbe of metal, or in case it is desired to use a porous material so that avacuum may be applied, a screenlike material may be used. A variety ofother types of material may also be employed.

The Wall forms are provided with suitable members for mechanicalrigidity, such as vertical framing members 52 and 54 and horizontalwalers 66.

The forms are carried by vertically-extending hangers such as 68. Meanswill presently be to move the forms to casting and stripped positions.At the present point it may be stated that there is associated with eachform one or more levers such as 1a which when moved, are capable ofmoving the forms generally toward the walls,

or toward "the space Where the wall is to be cast, or awaytherefrom.Further details of-this movement will be subsequently explained.

The general arrangement of the forms, and a set of concrete walls whichhave been casttherein, is shown in Fig. 2 as seen in plan view fromabove, and is shown in Figs. 3 and 4 as shown in horizontal section. Thedifi'erence between Figs. 3 and 4 is that in Fig. 3 the forms are stillin the casting position, while in Fig. 4 they have been stripped fromthe walls and are in a release or open position. The frame 30, with itscamand-follow means and actuating means, as will be explained,determines the casting and open positions of the forms, as well as thepaths of movement of the forms between these positions, and thus servesas a jig.

The operation is illustrated in Figs. 5-9, which are schematic verticalsectional views. Prior to the condition illustrated in Fig. 5, when theentire apparatus is some distance from the ground, the

screw jacksare extended so that when the frame is lowered, the screwjacks will support the frame at a sufiicient elevation that the bottomedges of the forms will be several inches from the ground. The crane maynow be lowered to such a point that there is slack in the cables, or maybe disconnected entirely.

In Fig. 5, the frame together with the forms has been lowered onto afoundation slab 42, and the screw jacks have been retracted or loweredsufficiently so that the forms clear the foundation and the ground by apredetermined distance, this distance being such that when the forms areclosed, that is, moved to casting position, which involves a motion bothinwardly and downwardly, they will rest on their bottom edges.

In Fig. 5 the levers such as T0 are all raised, and the opposed wallforms are all separated from one another; that is, they are in an openposition.

The next step is to lower the levers 50, to bring the opposed inner andouter wall forms toward 0 one another to the closed position.

At points where two separate outer forms or panels come together to forman exterior corner for the building, means are provided for fasteningthem together snugly after they are brought to the closed position sothat they will form a ood seal for the concrete which will be poured.Thus as shown in Fig. 3, the fastening means may comprise bolts 1|,which are passed through aligned openings in their exterior forms, andheld in place by nuts. At convex corners within the building, bolts Haare similarly arranged; these corners, although within the proposedbuilding, may be classified as outer corners since they are similar tothe corners where the bolts H are located, being convex, and beingcharacterized by the fact that their adjacent wall forms move away fromone another when they are moved to the open or stripped position.

After the inner wall forms have been moved to the casting position,corner forms, generally indivated at 12 in Fig. 3, are adjusted to thecasting position. These corner forms, to be described later in moredetail, serve to fill in gaps between their adjacent inner wall formsand to shape the cast 6. walls. Also, when fastened in the castingposition, they interconnect the inner wall forms, and serve to hold themin place.

'Itmay be seen that when the inner and outer wall forms are moved to thecasting position under the guidance of the frame 30 and fastened by thebolts and the corner forms, being also braced by the frame, they will beaccurately positioned and will conform with a wall-defining space havinga predetermined configuration.

In Fig.6, the wall forms are in closed or casting'position, but noconcrete has yet been poured.

After the forms are closed, the screw jacks may be further loweredslightly to make certain that at least a portion of the weight of theforms is carried by the foundation, whereby the pressure of the forms ontheir lower edges serve to provide a good Seal to retain the concretewhich will be poured into the forms.

In 'Fig. 7 concrete has been poured into the forms. The concrete is thenallowed to set.

The corner forms are next stripped, and then the levers "Ill are raisedfor stripping the wall forms. In Fig. 8, all the levers except'therighthand center one have been completely raised, and it will beobserved that their associated wall forms have been stripped from thewalls, being moved back therefrom into an open position. The right-handcenter lever has been moved only part way from its down to its "upposition, and its wall form has been only partly stripped. It may beobserved that the upper edge of the wall form is stripped or moved awayfrom the Wall before the lower edge is moved away. The reason for thisaction will be better understood after the details of the mechanismassociated with the levers has been explained.

After all the forms have been stripped, the crane or other liftingapparatus is again employed to lift the entire frame 36 together withthe forms, entirely above the walls, and the complete assembly is thentransported to another site. The operation may be repeated on successivesites to cast a number of sets of walls. Roofs are applied to the wallsin any suitable manner.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, it may be seen that with each form there maybe associated a plurality of the levers 19, for operating it. In theillustrated arrangement, each form has at least two levers, one ateither end, and these two levers are synchronized by means such as ashaft l3.

Figs. 3 and 4 show, in horizontal section, the forms in casting positionand in open position, respectively.

Levers for actuating forms Turning to Figs. 10-14, the details of thelevers which control the forms via the hangers will now be explained.

In Fig. 13 there is shown a typical hanger such as 75, which performsthe same function as the hanger E8 shown in Fig. 5, serving to support aform. This hanger M is carried by a pin '15, on which there is rotatablymounted a follower member or roller 18 which in turn is supported by aca n-like track 8%, formed as the upper surface of a member 82 carriedby frame members 38a. Journalled in the frame members 30a is a rockshaft 84, to which there is aflixed a lever 88 of the same type as thelever 19 of Fig. 5. The lever 85 terminates at its outer end, not shown,in a handle by which it may be manually operated.

A link 83 is pivotally connected to the hanger M, and to the lever 35.It may be seen that motionof the lever 86 in an upward direction istransmitted via the link 88 to the hanger l4, and serves to move theupper end of this hanger along a path generally determined by the shapeof the upper surface 80 of the member 82, since the follower 16 movesalong this surface as a cam track. In the embodiment illustrated in Fig.13, the first part of this track is horizontal and the latter part ofthis track slopes upwardly, and hence the upper end of the hanger "M,and consequently the upper edge of the form, will tend to move alongpaths which are at firstapproximately horizontal and then slopeupwardly. Since the bottom edge of the form is, during the initial partof the motion, held in place because it is resting on the foundation,the upper edge of the form will first be stripped away from the wall.There is thus a very slight initial pivoting movement or rotation of theform about its lower edge. This pivoting movement will be enhanced if,when the forms are closed, the follower 16 is lifted slightly above thetrack 39 by reason of the forms resting on the foundation. It may benoted that in order to break the adhesion between the form and the wallat the top first, there is required only a slight movement of the toppart of the form away from the wall. 7

Another way of describing the initial motion produced by the apparatusis to say that the top of the form initially moves along a pathtangential with respect to an axis through the lower edge of the form.

When the follower l8 reaches the upwardly sloping portion of the track89, it produces a lifting action on the hanger and on the forms, andconsequently the bottom edge of the form is lifted from the ground andswings over so that it hangs generally vertically.

When he lever 83 is raised, means are provided automatically to lock themechanism in position so that the lever 2-5 will remain in raisedposition, and so that the form will not move back toward the walls. Asillustrated in Fig. 13, this locking mechanism comprises a link havingits upper end pivotally carried by the link 88, and having on its lowerend a transverse bar or pin 92 which is adapted to move along an uppersurface of the frame members'iifia. It may be seen that the link 98extends from its pivot downwardly at an angle so as to slant toward thehanger l of the form. As shown in Fig. 14, the bar or pin 92 may extendtransversely from the links 9!) in both directions, and the framemembers 35a may be formed to have two upper surfaces on which the pin 92rides. The contour of an upper surface is shown in Fig. 13. This surfaceis generally straight and horizontal during the major portion of themovement of the pin 92 as the lever is raised, but when the leverapproaches its uppermost position, the pin 92 reaches a slot 94 which isformed in the upper surface of the frame 3%. The slot is illustrated asasymmetric, its side toward the hanger M being generally vertical, andits opposite side slanting from the bottom upwardly toward the lever 86.

As the lever 36 is raised, the pin 92 eventually reaches the slot 8 5,and by the action of gravity, the pin 92, together with the link 99,drops downwardly so that the pin moves into the slot. If the lever 86 isnow released, the pin 92 and the link 90 will hold it in raisedposition, because the shape of the slot 24 and the angle at which thispin is forced into the slot by the lever will prevent the returnmovement of the lever.

This locking action is quite useful, since it is desirable to be able tostrip all the forms, by

' of the crane and the movable frame 3! and moved to another site.

When it is desired once again to move one or more forms into a castingposition, the operator may move the lever 85 slightly farther in thesame direction as in raising it, and the pin 92 will ride up the back,slanting, side of the slot. The operator may then lift the pin 92 andits associated link 90, slightly, and lower the lever 86 until the pin82 is on the side of the slot nearest the hanger 14. From this point on,the lever 85 may be further lowered and the pin 92 will merely ride onthe upper surface of the frame members a.

Although the locking means illustrated has certain unique advantages,other types of locking means may also be used to advantage. For example,openings might be provided in the frame members 39a and the lever 85which become aligned'when the lever 8'6 is raised, and a pin might bepassed through the aligned openings by the operator when it is desiredto retain the leverin the raised position.

Figure 15 Reference is now made to Fig. 15, which is a verticalsectional View through an inner and outer form, and which illustratescertain additional features w ich may be employed, such as means foraiding in retaining the forms in position against the outward pressureof the plastic concrete, and an arrangement for temporarily retainingwindow forms in the wall forms. It will be understood that the left-handside of Fig. 15 is toward the interior of the building, and theright-hand side is toward the exterior.

Prior to casting the walls, there will have been formed a suitablefoundation which may include a horizontal foundation slab 95, and afooting 93, which, like the walls which are to be formed, may be ofconcrete or other settable plastic building material. The upper surfaceof the footing 98 is illustrated as being provided with a channel Ill!)of rectangular cross section. When the concrete wall I92 is formed onthe footing, it will extend downwardly into the channel I00, whereby thewall is keyed into the footing, for mechanical rigidity, and also to aidin providing a seal against moisture. The various walls such as I82 maybe formed of an insulating type of concrete. It may also be noted thatthe horizontal foundation slab 96 rests on the footing 98, and the wallJ02 extends downwardly below the upper surface of the foundation slab96, so as to insulate the slab, and also to prevent the entrance ofmoisture from outside the building onto the upper surface of thefoundation slab.

In Fig. 15, the inner form may be designated as I05 and the outer formas I08. The nature of the faces is the same as that described inconnection with Fig. 5, being assumed, in this illustration, to be ofmetal.

The forms hang from the frame members it); of the movable frame byhangers Hi! and Certain of the forms, for example, the form I08, areprovided with a rubber member H3 which runs along their lower edges.When the form is in casting position, it presses this rubberm'emberdownwardly against the footing so as to help prevent fluidcomponents of the plastic concrete from leaking out; 7 Means Will now bedescribed for aiding in retaining the forms in position against thehydrostatic pressure of the plastic concrete. As part of such means,there is shown in Fig. 15, on the outer side of the outer form I08;ahorizontal waler H4. This Waler is provided with an aperture at IISthrough which there may be passed a wedge Hi3. A tapered tie I20 may beinserted through the forms prior to casting the wall, and this tie I20has an aperture I22 which may be aligned with the aperture H6, wherebythe wedge I I8 may be passed downwardlyt-hrough both these apertures,The wedge H8 is provided with a shoulder I24 which strikes a trans versereinforcing member I26 of the waler II I.

On the side of the inner form liifitoward the interior of the building,there is provided a generally similar horizontal waler I23 and a wedgeI558. The waler I28 has a stopI32, and the tie I28 carries a tab I34which cooperates with this stop to determine the maximum extent to whichthe tie I 28 may be inserted, The lefthand end of the tie IZ'Whas ahandle I36 which may be used when it is necessary to removethe tie.

It will be understood that prior to casting a wall, the forms are swunginto a casting position by lowering the levers which control them.

The tie I28 is inserted until the tab I 34 strikes the stop I552. Thewedge I33-is then inserted and then the Wedge H8 isinserted. The tie I20and the associated means-for'securing same serve to hold the formstogether in resisting the pressure head which will exist when theplastic concrete is poured.

Window forms In a preferred embodiment of the present invention,openings for windows and doors are formed at the same time thewallsare'-ca'ast; In some cases, permanent window frarnes maybe cast inplace, and allowed to -remain there; In other cases, temporary windowforms may be inserted'between the wall forms, the walls cast, the wallforms removed, the window forms then removed, and later permanentwindowframes may be inserted in the window openings. It

may be assumed that this later'method isemployed in the illustratedembodiment;

Reference is now made to' Figs. 15 through 19, inclusive. The wall formsa're'pro'vided with openings for windows and doors, awiriddw-openingbeing shown in these figures; In this embodiment, at some timebefore-the forms are completely closed, a window formis inserted between the wall forms." The-window'form coniprises an inner window form138- and an outer Window form I 40. The 'outer'window forni I49 mayfirst be attached to the inner window form I38, as by butterfly nuts MIand'associate'd bolts I 33, these bolts being pivotally carried-by theinner window form' ISBandbei ng adapted to be swung into place so as to'ezi-t'end through aligned slots in the window forms 1'38 and I40; Theinner window form133, carrying the outer window form I40; isthenattachedto'the' inner wall form I56, by means to be describedsubsequently. The edge of theinner' winddwrorm next to the form I06 :isprovided with a rim I 42. The outer Window-'form-i's' provided withagenerally similarrim lfls 'I'h'ese rims pr'oject into the space betweenthe wan forms; where by when'the wall forms-are forced toward oneanothenthey tend to grip-the v'vindow forms.

There are several reasons for constructing-the wihdowforms in twosections. By constructing them two sections, stripping themfrom theconcrete walls-is easier, because the surface of'contact with theconcrete is lessfor each or the sections than" it would be if a combinedwindow form were used. Moreover, each-section is li ght'er and thereforeeasier to handle than Wagnebe a combined window form. Also. b'yejz'fimoymg' we" Sections, and stripping the sections in oppositedirections, it is possible to give the windtsw open ngs any desired}shape, as seen a sectional plane-perpendicular to the wall;- Thus"- thewindow openings may be slightly recesse at either face of the wan,- byu'siirg window-"rorms'naving rims such as 142 and" I. It' will beho'tedthat; as illustrated, the outerwindow rerm'is -soinewhat larger-than theinner wih'dovv 'forrfi in the region Where they come togethea seas toprovide a recessed region. After the Walls-are completed, a window'frameor casement maybe inserted into this last-mentioned recessed region;Thelower part of-'th'e"outer window forth tapers down wardly to'wa'rdth'eou'tsidl or the building, to facilitate T stripping an'd to provideproperdrainage'of rainwatera The'upp'er' surface of the inner windowform tapers upwardly; toward the interiorbf the biii'l'di n'g, tofacilitate stripping. Asa" result, the outr'windowfforni may be strippedby removing; it 111* an'outward direction, and the inner window form'maybe stripped byfr'e'movingit in an inward direction;

Means will" now be" described for retaining the window'forms in'place.At the upper and lower edgesof the window opening in the inner form H36,there are provided angle' irfi hinrbifs I46 and" M1; respectively;Pivotally carried by and extendingthrou'g'h' the vertical portion of theupper- 'an'gl'e-iron T46 is" a locking device- I48. This device isprovided with suitable" shbul'der members; pin'sor the like on eitherside of the angle-iron so th'at itis adapted for pivotal nioti'on'mToward its inner'e'fn that is, its" left-hand end as shown in Fig' 16,theloclring device I48 isbent overto forrii aha'n'dle'; Its other-end}on the other side'of the-angle-iron I46} carries a directionperpendicufinger I51! extending in' a lar'to the axis of rotation ofth'e'lockin'g device, and in a' direction approximately opposite "thedirection" in"vvhi0h thl iandl' bri't', The fillgel" 150* cle rs theangle-iron 145 y a istance approximately equal to the thickness of thewindow "form I'3'8" which win be" inserted that point-E H The lockingdevice I I48 is" adapted te-be r0; tated between a' flock position, nwhich the handle extends downwardly andthe "finger extends Upwardly;all'd af felas' Dbsifibfiih which the handle eit'e'nds upwardiy andthfihigr 65; tends downwardly. The de'vic'eis shown in-the lock positionin Figs: 16 and'18S It i's's'howfiin the release psltidlihifiFiEfQ 1'9.

To assist the operator p0" ViCe' at the Ie1e'aISe 'p6SIifiofif th stopI52* which"extendsfroni 'the 'ngle-ir'on 14's intbWh pathof the lockingd C I4 5 The hahdl' eiid bf 'th "lb'l iiil 'dvic W hea'vif than thefingerena: and wheri; t e" making device" is in* the loci-i position;gravity tends thiheld it in that position holding the 'liljhtili? down;I The position oi the stop' 52 i's at e l'eva'tidh abov the axis ofrotationof the ldbki l'ig dvic 144,- but against the handle I48 willtend to hold the handle against the stop I52, and thereby hold thedevice in the release position.

Prior to placing the window form I=38 in po- 7 sition, the lockingdevices such as I48 are turned to the release position. When the wallforms are at least partially open, the window form I38 is positioned 'atthe window opening of the wall form I06. The locking device such as I48is then turned to the lock position. The window forms have an edge suchas I54, and the finger I50 passes on the side of the edge I54 oppositethe angle-iron I46, thereby holding the window form I38 in place,

at the top. A somewhat different means is employed'to secure the windowform I38 at the bottom. As shown in Figs. 16 and. 17, the window formI38 has a threaded bolt I56 pivotally attached to a web I58 of thewindow form I38. The angle-iron I41 and also the window form I38 haveslots, aligned with this bolt, and this bolt may be swung into'place soas to pass through both these slots. A butterfly nut I58 on the threadedbolt I56 holds the bolt and the window form in place.

4 By way of summary, prior to affixing the innerwindow form I38 to theinner wall form I06, the outer window form I40 is affixed to the innerwindow form by the pivoted threaded bolts I43 and butterfly nuts I M.forms are then inserted between the wall forms and the window for'm I38is afiixed to the wall form I06. The wall forms may now bebroughttogether against the window forms. Since the wall forms are firmlypressed against the window l forms, the window forms serve to seal upthe openings in the wall forms so that the concrete is retained;

Door openings are formed in the cast walls in a manner generally similarto the formation of I window openings, with the aid of door formsinsertedbetween thewall forms. A door form is illustrated as I59 in Fig.3. Such forms may extend downwardlyto thefloor level.

There hasalready been described, in connection with the tie bolt I20,one means for aiding in holding the forms together. A somewhat differentarrangement is shown in Fig. in connection with a tie bolt. I60. Thistie bolt is provided at its right-hand end with a threaded extension,and a nut I62 may be tightened on this threaded extension to press thewall form I08 toward the window forms and toward the wall form I06. Onthe interior of the wall form I06, there is provided a wedge I64 whichoperates in a manner generally similar to the wedge I already described.A handle I66 is located at the left-hand endof-the tie bolt I60, for usein removing the tie after the walls are cast.

A still different type of tie I68 is shown in Fig. 15 extending throughthe window opening. This tie is pivotally attached at its right-hand endto a downwardly-extending portion of a horizontal waler I10. .At itsleft-hand end it may be swung into a horizontal position through a slotin a downwardly extending portion I12 of a horizontal waler I14. The tieI68 is threaded at its left-hand end, and a nut I16 may be tightenedagainst the portion I12 in order to press'the wall forms toward oneanother.

The combined window In Fig. 17 there is shown an'opening or'inspectionwindow I18 in the inner window form. One purpose of this opening is toallow an operator to ascertain whether the concrete has completelyfilled the space under the window form, during a pouring operation.Another purpose is to let out any air which might otherwise tend tobecome entrapped in the space below a window form.

Comer forms The length of the inner wall forms or panels in a horizontaldirection is, in general, less than the corresponding length of the wallwhich are to be cast. This feature may be observed in Fig. 4, forexample, where the horizontal length of the form I may be observed to beless than the horizontal length of the interior wall surface I62, towhich it is opposed. The same is true of other inner wall forms such asI84, I86 and I88 with respect to the wall surfaces to which they areopposed. The purpose of this arrangement is to allow these wall forms tobe moved away from the respective wall surface without interfering withone another. As a result of this arrangement, however, when the innerwall forms are moved to a casting position, there would exist gaps atthe corners between them, if provision were not made to fill in thesegaps. There will be disclosed herein several variations of means forfilling in these gaps, such means being referred to as corner forms. Inthe embodiment shown in plan and sectional views in Figs. 2-4, there isillustrated an inflatable type of corner form. Details of this type ofcorner form are shown in Figs. 20, 21, and 22. A second type of cornerform is shown in Figs. 23 and 24. A third type of corner form is shownin Fig. 25.

The inflatable type of corner form, shown in Figs. 24 and 20-22 willfirst be described. This corner form includes an outer sheath or covermember I90, of rubber, canvas or the like, permanently attached to itsassociated forms I84 and I66, as by brackets I92 and I94, which engagebeads or enlarged edges I96 and I98 of the sheath. The sheath I need notnecessarily be airtight, but should be of flexible, collapsiblematerial. This sheath partly encloses a series of bladders orinflatable, collapsible cylinders 202206, inclusive, of rubber or thelike. In a variation, not shown, the sheath I60 may extend entirelyaround the bladders, as viewed in horizontal section, so as to embracethem on the inside as well as on the outside.

The bladders may be supported at their upper ends by suitable means, forexample a sheet of flexible material ,201, which may be attached to thetwo adjacent forms I84 and I86. The valve stems of the bladders extendupwardly through the flexible sheet 201, being held in place by nuts orthe like. The bladders are self-supporting when inflated, but whendeflated, the sheet 201 helps to support them and to retain them intheir proper relative positions. The bladders are braced on the innerside of the forms by a doorlike brace 209, which is hinged to a portionof the wall form I84. The door-like brace 209 is, in turn, braced by aseries of brace members 209a, 2091) and 2090, which are individuallypivoted on portions of the wall form I86 and are adapted to be fastenedto the wall form I84.

A feature is shown in Figs. 21 and 22 which may be employed, regardlessof what type of corner form i used, namely, means for locking the bottomedges of the adjacent wall forms to-

